The following is a description of three types of vacuum cleaners which differ in design and operation. All of them have, as common features, a motor-driven fan, a dust collection chamber, and one or more floor treatment devices which are each adapted for a particular purpose.
The canister vacuum cleaner has a housing which can be moved on the floor to be cleaned on wheels and/or runners. The housing contains the motor-fan unit and the dust collection container. The floor treatment device, here referred to as floor nozzle, is connected to the dust collection chamber via a suction hose, and possibly a suction wand connected therebetween. During vacuuming, the housing is moved to the desired position by pulling on the suction wand.
In a stick vacuum cleaner, the motor-fan unit and the dust collection container are also disposed in a housing. A suction wand extends from one end of the housing, connecting the floor nozzle to the dust collection container, and a handle used to maneuver the housing to the desired position extends from the other end.
Uprights do not have as strictly divided a configuration as the two aforementioned types. One feature of an upright is a movable base unit which carries an upper body containing a large dust collection container. The two parts may be tiltable relative to each other and can usually be locked in a parked position in which the upper body is nearly upright when the base unit is located on a horizontal floor in a position of use. In this position, the upright stands unsupported. During vacuuming, the above-described locked engagement is released, and the upper body is tilted through a certain angle to an operating position. The tilt angle depends on the height of the user and on the particular purpose of use. A handle is provided on the upper body for maneuvering the entire appliance. In order to give the user additional options for vacuuming besides vacuum cleaning with the base unit, such as above-the-floor-vacuuming, the air conduit has an interface and, downstream thereof, a section which is formed by a hose or hose/wand assembly (see, for example, WO 2007/008770 A1 or EP 0 708 613 B1). In most designs, a wand member is held in an insertion receptacle. After removing the wand member from the insertion receptacle, different types of vacuum attachments may be attached to the suction end thereof. The assembly so formed can be used in the same manner as with a conventional canister vacuum cleaner. During such operation, the upright is usually in a parked position, in which the upper body is locked in position on the base unit. In order to prevent excessive wear on the footprint area, the brush motor can be turned off in this mode of operation. In some designs, switches may be provided which detect the locked position and disconnect the brush motor from the power supply.
During standard vacuuming with the base unit, the user may happen to detect dirt at positions above the floor, such as on moldings or the like, which he/she wishes to remove using the hose or the hose/wand assembly. In such a situation, the user typically holds the upper body in a tilted position with one hand by the handle and removes the hose or hose/wand assembly from its holder with the other hand so as to perform the vacuuming operation. In such situations, the brush motor is not turned off because the upright is not in the parked position.